Autumn Colors
by Elphieba Thropp
Summary: "Honestly, I think you'd be pretty whatever color you are. Especially green." Fiyeraba oneshot! Shiz-era.


**My second Wicked fic! Or, if you don't count that incredibly short drabble, my first one! I do hope you enjoy. I wrote these in the same night, too. Seems like I write three different stories in one night or a paragraph every two months.**

**Disclaimer: *laughing track***

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She kept her head down, her thick black curtain of hair hanging down into her face and around her shoulders. The only thing that was visible to her was the ground beneath her upon which she walked on.

Her hands were clasped onto her dark, long sleeved shirt, the habit that happened so often the fabric was stretched at the end of her sleeves, and her arms were crossed over her chest. The plain messenger bag on her hip bumped onto her thigh every other step she made, which was frequently, since her pace was fast as she could make it without breaking into a run, because that would call attention, and attention was the last thing she wanted. She deliberately stepped onto the newly fallen leaves, though, her childish nature getting the best of her, and she was so distracted with her activity she didn't notice someone walking in her direction until her head bumped into their torso.

"Sorry-" she had started, glancing up to see who it was, and stopped what she had been saying when she did. That smirk could only belong to a certain Avaric Tenmeadows, and the couple of cronies behind him. It seemed like the Unnamed God didn't want her to get to her dorm and study peacefully today (or any other day, to be honest).

"What?" sneered Avaric. "Are you not going to finish your apology? Or did you see it was me and stop?"

Elphaba sighed, her grip on her arms tightening. "Please just leave me alone, Avaric."

"You bumped into me! I have a right to say something!" Avaric mimicked her pose in crossing his arms, and one of the guys behind him echoed a "Yeah!". Elphaba would've chuckled had she not been the victim of their idiotic behavior.

"Just go away, I didn't mean to!" She glared at him, her chin pointing up at him.

"Ooh, the Artichoke's steamed!" Laughs went around the posse and Elphaba only just got madder, whipping her head and staring at the grove of trees to the right of her. Oh, how she wished she could just disappear into their dark shadows forever. Maybe even become a tree herself, and make thick roots that big jerks like Avaric would trip over and twist their ankles. It sounded better than being human and in this situation.

"Hey look, Artichoke wants to be in the trees! That's where the wild animals belong, right?" Avaric didn't wait for his question to be answered before asking another one. "Hey, leaves turn all different colors in the autumn, right? So which color do you turn? Red, orange, or yellow?"

"I think it's red!" one of the cronies shouted.

"Nah, man, I'm betting money on yellow."

"Prepared to be broke, because it's definitely orange."

The comments kept coming at her, words spewing out of their mouths and being shot into her head, the words burning into her mind like water would to her skin, except instead of the usual few raindrops, it felt like an entire ocean sweeping into her brain, and if she listened closely, she could imagine the sizzling sounds. She kept her glare on the trees and pretended to ignore what the boys were saying about her. Her eyebrows furrowed, and her concentrated vision soon became blurry and out of focus. She didn't decide to be born green, and she certainly didn't decide to be mocked and picked on every day.

Could she stand up for herself? Yes, as a quick wit came easily to her. But that would only result in more mockery towards her, and she was outnumbered, and so she would end up crying when she got to her dorm and more tissues had to be thrown in the general direction of the waste bin, which resulted in more welts on her cheeks and more excuses to Galinda that she prayed were good enough to believe. Currently, it was taking all of her self control to not start shaking. She mentally scolded herself for being so weak.

Her vision and hearing came back into focus when a recognizable voice said, "Hey, what's going on?" She looked away from the woods to see Fiyero walking towards her and the group of guys. Oh, why him of all people? He would join in for sure.

"The Artichoke's provoking me because I accidentally bumped into her!" Avaric pointed an accusing finger at Elphaba, and his group of friends nodded in agreement, but all Elphaba could manage was a weak glare at Avaric. A weak glare for a weak person. How fitting, she thought.

Fiyero only glanced at Avaric and then Elphaba, stating, "It seems more like you're the one provoking her Avaric. And her name is Elphaba. I suggest you leave."

Avaric's mouth gaped open for a second, no noise coming out, until he scoffed and rolled his eyes, muttering something under his breath as he walked away, his posse following him.

Fiyero looked back onto Elphaba. "You fine?" he questioned.

"I'm fine," she snapped defensively.

"What were they even saying to you?"

"Oh, the usual," she sighed. "They asked if I changed colors in the fall like leaves did. I'm already one abnormal color; even more would make me more horrendible than I already am."

Fiyero tilted his hands, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Really? Horrendible is the word you would use? Honestly, I think you'd be pretty whatever color you are. Especially green."

A small amount of color rose to Elphaba's cheeks, but her eyes were an angry, stormy brown. "You know, I think making fun of people is just as bad as lying."

Fiyero shrugged. "I don't know what that had to do with what I say, because I wasn't lying."

Elphaba felt as if her cheeks were as hot as a Vinkun summer. Oh, how her face betrayed her! It wasn't fair at all! "J-just go away!" she stuttered out, clutching the strap connected to her bag as she started to walk away.

Fiyero put his hand on her shoulder, causing her to pause in her tracks. "Okay, but, before I go... Galinda was right when she said pink goes good with green."

Elphaba only blushed harder as she slapped his hand away, walking quickly in the direction of her dorms as she tried to ignore the great shock and tingling sensation where Fiyero has touched her.

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**Well, did you like reading it? I liked writing it! Reviews are like oil to my tin limbs :)**


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